Saudi-India to hold trade talks

Riyadh, January 28, 2014

Saudi Arabia and India are set to discuss trade and economic issues at a meeting of top ministers in the kingdom, said a report.

The Minister of Commerce and Industry Tawfiq Al-Rabiah and the Indian Finance Minister P Chidambaram will ‘meet within the framework of the joint economic commission,” Sibi George, deputy chief of the Indian mission, was quoted as saying in the Arab News report.

Chidambaram, along with an 11-member delegation of top Indian officials, will focus on “shared interests in the realms of trade, investment and economy.”

The two ministers will hold strategic level discussions of the major issues on the bilateral agenda, including economy, trade and investment with special reference to the areas identified for joint cooperation.

The delegation will discuss an increase in exchange of business delegations, trade facilitation, co-operation between educational institutes and sharing expertise in science and technology.

The Indian finance minister will co-chair the 10th session of the Saudi-India Joint Commission Meeting (JCM), scheduled for today (January 28) at the Council of Saudi Chambers, said the report quoting a statement released by the Indian Embassy.

Saudi Arabia is the fourth largest trade partner of India and the bilateral trade exceeded $43.78 billion in 2012-2013, it said.

According to Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (Sagia), the state-owned investment regulatory authority, Saudi Arabia has issued 426 licenses to Indian companies for joint ventures.

Several Indian companies have also established collaborations with Saudi companies and are working in the kingdom in designing, consultancy, financial services and software development.